


Miles, Miles, Miles

by AJ_Jesterdude_Gone_Wild



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Abuse, Alchahol, Angst, Bands, Bars, Cigarettes, Denny's, F/F, Fire, Fuck The Winter, Guitars, Humanstuck, M/M, McDonalds Food, Nightmares, Oddly Rebellious AU, Sadstuck, Scars, Sleep Deprivation, Smoking, Unhealthy Relationships, band practice
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-04
Updated: 2019-08-05
Packaged: 2019-10-15 11:05:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,032
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17527553
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AJ_Jesterdude_Gone_Wild/pseuds/AJ_Jesterdude_Gone_Wild
Summary: Hello! Sorry that I've been gone for a while, I've been working on an ACTUAL STORY! Surprising, no? Anyway, I figured that I'd post the prologue so you can all get ready to tear me to shreds. Have fun~





	1. An Escape

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! Sorry that I've been gone for a while, I've been working on an ACTUAL STORY! Surprising, no? Anyway, I figured that I'd post the prologue so you can all get ready to tear me to shreds. Have fun~

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Your name is DAVE STRIDER. You’re 17, interested in making music, and you’ve had enough of this shit.

Your name is DAVE STRIDER. You’re 17, interested in making music, and you’ve had enough of this shit. You’ve been living with your brother for as long as you can remember, and as the years have gone on, he’s gotten worse. He drinks more, and you spend all of your time in your room. Well, that ends today. You’ve got a suitcase packed, your guitar slung over your back, and a baseball bat in your hand. You’re out of here. 

You look up at the tall, towering apartment complex. You’re reminded of the “battles” you’d get into with your...brother. You recall losing every time, and the disappointed look on his stupid face. You didn’t have scars before. Now you do. They line your arms, a few on your chest and back. You turn away, and make your way over to the bus stop. Despite having things packed and set, you’ve got no plan on where to go from here. You just figured you’d hop from town to town, until you were far, far away from here. A minute goes by. Another. You wonder how long the damn bus is gonna take. Finally, it pulls up. Not many people on it this late. You don’t know where it’s going, and you don’t care. You just need to escape. 

The bus ends up dropping you off at Aldine. Not too far from Houston, but still, any distance is good. You find a hotel, and check in for the night. In the hotel room, you unpack some clothes, set down your guitar, and lie down on the bed. You have a feeling that this is the first nights of many like this. 


	2. Three In The Morning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rain pitter patters on Dave's hotel room window.

The moon hung in the sky, full, as the clouds rolled in front of it. The stars were covered along with it, turning the sky fully pitch. A low rumble, and then pitter patter, as rain began to pour down. Despite this, Dave still stood out on his balcony, a lit cigarette in his hands. 

 

It had been a week since he had bounced from his old living situation. He had hopped from town to town, with his bag of stuff and his guitar. Where the strider was now, he couldn’t recall. The hotel room here was cheap though. He took another puff, breathing in and then out, the smoke flying out into the night. He had his shades off, letting his red eyes see the storm brewing in front of him. Dave extinguished the cigarette, and moved back indoors. Lighting struck somewhere as soon as he was in. Perfectly timed, he thought.

 

The hotel room he was in wasn’t too big, but not quite small. A fake potted plant was in one corner, a desk against a wall with it’s chair in front of it. The slightly comfortable bed’s sheets were strewn about, from Dave’s tossing and turning. That’s why he was up for a smoke. His clothes weren’t in the dresser, but placed atop it in a messy fashion. The leather jacket he had was on the back of the desk chair, and his guitar was on top of the desk. The bathroom’s light was on, and the door was open just a tad, letting some of it shine in. Too dark without it. Dave stood there, taking it all in again, as his hand absentmindedly readjusted his junk. He climbed back into bed, and nodded off, dreaming unwelcome dreams.

 

Dave was back in the apartment, fighting his brother again. He was trying, slicing the blade with precise accuracy, but each slash only seemed to make him stronger. Soon, Dave was able to behead his brother, but the head regrew twofold, like a hydra. A monster.

 

A, quite frankly, annoying alarm began to beep, waking the Strider up. He lazily pressed the ‘Snooze’ button, and pushed himself up. He looked outside the glass sliding door, seeing the sun in the sky. The natural light washed over his almost naked body. He slept just in his red boxers, but on colder nights he’d put on a shirt. He looked down on his scars again. He wouldn’t be getting anymore of these. And that’s a good thing. 

 

He dressed himself, putting on a white shirt, some clean(ish) jeans, socks, his sneakers, and his jacket, and began to pack up. Shoving all his clothes messily into his suitcase, he grabbed his guitar and slung it around his back. He felt around in his pocket, finding his switchblade, feeling better knowing he wasn’t gonna leave it behind. With all his things packed up, he closed the door, and began to make his way down to the main office. He checked out, and decided to try and find at least something to eat, even if it was just fries or something. But before he could do anything, he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket.

 

* * *

 

Rose worried. She normally doesn’t do that, she always finds a reason on why something was happening. But after hearing the news from John, she was nervous. Dave had apparently run away from home, and he was somewhere out there alone. She had texted him, called him, but he never responded back or picked up. Rose picked up her phone again and called up John.

 

“John?” Rose asked.

 

“Hey Rose! What’s happening?”

 

“Oh...not much really. I’m just...nervous about Dave again. Do you think he’s ok?”

 

“I think he’s fine...I mean, he’s Dave. He can take care of himself, not super well but good enough. I’m not saying that I don’t care, I really do hope he’s ok and someone finds him.”   


 

“Yeah, I understand. Before he...ran away, I noticed that he seemed to be in a rough spot with his brother...I mean, I’d always suspected this, but I didn’t think it was so bad he had to run off.”

 

“Mhm. It sucks, man.”

 

“It does.”

 

The call went silent for a few short moments, the two not really knowing what to say next. John broke the silence.

 

“Look. I’m sure he’s gonna be fine. I gotta go, my Dad’s yelling about something again. Talk to you later, yeah?”

 

“Yeah. Bye, John.”

 

“Bye.”

 

Rose gripped the phone tightly. She was gonna try one last time. She sent a message to Dave.

 

“Dave. It’s Rose. I...I know this is the 4th time I’ve tried to contact you, and you don’t have to respond. I just want to know if you’re ok.”

 

* * *

 

Dave read the message, and felt a pang of guilt for not answering her previous texts. He sent one back, finally.

 

“hey. i’m ok.”

 

The strider returned the phone to his pocket, and walked over to the nearby McDonald's near the exit of the town. He stepped inside and grabbed some fries, and sat down. His phone buzzed again. He took it out of his pocket and read the new message.

 

“Dave, thank goodness. I’ve been worried sick about you, we’ve been worried sick about you. Are you alright? Have you been eating?”

 

“yeah, i have. i’m having some fries right now, actually”

 

“Good. Hey, if you don’t mind me asking...why did you leave?”

 

Dave shifted when he saw the question. He knew he’d have to answer it sometime. Now would be best time to do so. 

 

“ok. so like...bro was an abusive piece of shit. i have so many scars from those stupid battles on the roof of our apartment. he was drunk most of the time, he was barely around, he was just...shitty. and i’d just...had enough. i couldn’t keep doing it rose.”

 

It felt like a small weight had been lifted, while many heavy ones still remained.

 

“Dave...I’m sorry. Where are you?”

 

“i dunno. i think...i’m right outside Ada? i’m not sure.”

 

“Let me know when you figure it out, O.K?”

 

“i will. thanks for uh, checking in on me too. ok, i gotta go. Bye”

 

Dave got up, threw out the empty container of fries, and went around looking for the town sign.

 

* * *

 

Rose was feeling better now that she had talked to Dave, but she also had an idea. She began to pack up some of her things, some spare clothes, some food, and other items, and began to walk over to John’s house. She was going to find Dave. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this took a while to get out. I was planning on writing a ██████/██████/██████ fic but this ended up happening instead, which I'm glad for cause this AU is fun to write for! Anyways, I hope you enjoyed it! I do not know when chapter 3 will even be ready, or if I'll do the ██████/██████/██████ first. Whatevs, hope you enjoyed the read! (I also finished this exactly at 3 AM so...there's that)


	3. Hunt You Down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rose goes to find Dave.

Rose arrived at John’s house. She knocked on the door, resting her suitcase of clothes and other essentials outside. John opened up the door, surprised to see Rose.

 

“Rose, what are you doing here?”

 

“This will sound crazy, but I actually got Dave to talk back to me. I need your car and your keys, I’m going out to find him.” Rose explained.

 

“Rose...he’s in Texas. We’re in New York. It’s gonna be a long drive. Do you want me to come along?”

 

“That would be helpful, yes. I’m gonna be in the car, you get packed and we’re going. I’ll text Dave to figure out where he is, and I’ll ask him to stay put for a few days until we get there.”

 

Rose picked up her stuff, and made her way over to the parked car in the driveway, while John stood in the doorway befuddled. He went back inside, and packed up some clothes, toothbrush, toothpaste, and finally, the legendary texts of Colonel Sassacre. Or at least, a smaller version of the book, as carrying around the original would’ve been too heavy. He grabbed his keys and went out to the car. He and Rose drove off, while Rose sent a short message to Dave.

 

“Hey. Let me know where you’re gonna be next, and stay there for like...maybe 3 days.”

 

* * *

 

 

Dave tried not to fall asleep on the bus. He was on his way to another town, finishing up his business around the outskirts of Ada. He was startled awake with the buzz in his pocket. Taking his phone out, he answered the text Rose had sent him. The bus pulled up, and Dave went off to check himself into another hotel. He unpacked his stuff, and fell asleep wondering what he was even gonna do for 3 days.

 

* * *

 

Rose and John drove. They took turns while one would sleep in the passenger seat, occasionally stopping at food joints along the road for meals. Rose tiredly pulled into the parking lot of a hotel. She smiled, and nudged John awake.

 

“Rose...what is it?”

 

“We’re here. And Dave’s right outside.”

 

* * *

 

Dave had awoke once again, from another nightmare of his brother. There was no balcony in this room, so he pulled a shirt, some shorts and his jacket on and went outside to get a smoke in. When he stepped outside, he noticed that it was snowing. Snowing, in Texas. It rarely happened, but when it did, it flurried down hard. He sighed, pulling out a cigarette and lighting it. He breathed in, and then out, letting the smoke mingle with the snowflakes falling on his hair. 

 

“I didn’t know you smoked.” Someone said, standing directly next to him. Dave jumped, and then became confused at who he saw. It was Rose. In Texas. 

 

“Rose? What the hell are you doing here?” Dave said.

 

“You’re going through a rough spot, and I want to help you. So me and John drove down here. Whether you like it or not, Dave, we’re sticking by you in this.” Rose explained.

 

“Ok, so first off, you AND John? Secondly, the room I have here only has one bed.” 

 

“John wanted to come along voluntarily, and John can use your bed while you and I are out.”

 

“Out?”

 

“Yeah, you dumbass, I wanna talk with you. I saw a bar around the corner, some bands are playing there if you wanna go see them.”

 

“Sure. That works, I guess. Let’s get John inside.”

 

The two woke John up, although he wasn’t too happy about it. He fell asleep instantly after laying down on the bed in Dave’s room. Dave got himself dressed for the weather, putting on jeans, a long sleeved shirt, and his jacket again, and him and Rose made their way to the bar she had mentioned. They stood outside of it, near a window.

 

“So how have you been?” Rose asked.

 

“Decent.” Dave managed.

 

“I see. Do you have enough clothes?”

 

“Rose, I think I’m ok on every front.”

 

“Alright, alright. Why did you take so long to respond back to me?”

 

“I just...I felt really guilty, and-“ Dave began, before something inside caught his eye. There was this dude on the stage with his band. The view was foggy due to the snow, but the music could be heard from where they were standing. The dude’s voice was..gravely, husky, low, and alluring.

 

“Dave? Dave? Earth to Dave Strider.” Rose said.

 

“What? Sorry, I uh...hey, can we go inside?” Dave asked.

 

“Sure. But you’re gonna have to finish answering that question eventually.”

 

“Yeah yeah yeah whatever let’s get inside.”

 

They moved inside the packed bar, accidentally nudging people and bumping them out of the way. Dave could see the guy more clearly now. He was shorter than Dave, in fact, he was the shortest one on the stage. He had some bandages on his left hand, and he wore a tore up t-shirt with some ripped jeans. He seemed to be scream singing into the mic, but it still somehow sounded good to Dave. The guy was a little chubby, and his hair was a pitch black mess. His face matched his voice, both angry. The band finished, and walked off stage, it seemed that was the last song in their set. Rose noticed Dave eyeing the singer.

 

“You know that guy?” She asked.

 

“No…” Dave said, blushing slightly. 

 

“Well, looks like he’s coming over here.”

 

Sure enough, the short singer was making his way over to the bar, and he ordered some drink and sat right next to Dave. Dave was freaking out. This guy was cute. Really cute. Like, oh my god I’m in love, cute. Rose seemed to figure out Dave’s thoughts immediately.

 

“You should say something.” Rose whispered to him, smiling.

 

“Ok, wish me luck.” He quietly answered back, turning to his new crush beside him.

 

“Hey.” Dave said, trying to hide his nervousness while his voice betrayed him. It came out shaky.

 

“Hey there.” The guy grunted. He spoke a little loud, like he was always yelling.

 

“Uh, I liked your song, dude. I came in as you guys were finishing up but it sounded pretty awesome.”

 

“Thanks. I’m Karkat.” He said, as the bartender gave him his drink. He took a sip.

 

“I’m Dave.”

 

“So what’s your story?” Karkat asked. Karkat...what a cute name for a cute guy.

 

“I’m uh...I’m traveling around Texas. With my friends. This is Rose.” He said, pointing to her.

 

“Nice to meet you.” She said.

 

“Yeah, feelings mutual. That’s pretty cool.”

 

“Oh, it’s not really anything.” Dave said, shrugging it off.

 

“Hey uh...ah, fuck it. You wanna meet the rest of my band?” Karkat said, taking down a lot of the drink after.

 

“Uh, uhm.” Dave stuttered out. Rose saved the day.

 

“We’d love to.”

 

“Sweet. They’re probably outside right now.” Karkat said, getting up. He walked outside, with Dave and Rose following suit. They met up with the rest of the band.

 

“Hey guys. This is uh, Dave.” Karkat said.

 

“And that’s Rose.” Dave said, nodding his head to her. “Hey.”

 

“Hello.” She said, waving.

 

“Sup? I’m Gamzee, I’m on drums. That’s Tavros, he’s on guitar, there’s Sollux, he plays bass, and Karkat’s the singer.” A tall, lanky dude said.

 

Gamzee was about as tall as Dave, and he had big curly hair. He was wearing a jacket, and some sweatpants, and outrageously large shoes. A purple beanie was on his head, containing the monster of hair underneath it. Tavros, the guitarist, was Rose’s height. He nervously plucked his guitar, shyly waving hello. He had a mohawk, and seemed to be the only one properly dressed for the snow. Snow pants, heavy jacket, he was prepared. Sollux seemed busy on his phone, texting somebody. His hair was short, and he was wearing a winter vest and glasses. One lens was tinted red, the other tinted blue. There was another person there, with her back on the truck. She was wearing a dress, some mittens, and a wool hat. 

 

“And who are you?” Rose said, pointing to the mysterious woman.

 

“Oh! Hi there, I’m Kanaya. I do backup vocals.” She explained. She had ear muffs on, perhaps she didn’t hear Gamzee introducing the band.

 

“Really? I didn’t see you on stage.” Rose questioned. 

 

“That’s cause she’s got stage fright. She has a microphone backstage most of the time.” Karkat explained.

 

“I see. And what is the name of your band?” She asked.

 

“We’re the Threshecutioners! Neat name, yeah?” Tavros said.

 

“Yeah, it’s cool.” Dave said. “How long are you guys gonna be in town for?”

 

“Forever.” Karkat said, disappointingly. “I live here, and I can’t really...go.” He said, rubbing the back of his neck. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a piece of paper. He grabbed a pencil from the other pocket and scribbled a number and an address on it.

 

“Here’s my number and shit.” Karkat said. “Peace.”

 

The band packed up, and Dave and Rose went back to the hotel room. Dave’s crush on Karkat hadn’t faded, but only grown stronger. This was going to be interesting. He put the number into his phone, and had a game of rock paper scissors with Rose to see who could sleep near the heater. She won. As Dave drifted asleep, instead of seeing the beginning of another nightmare, he saw Karkat.

 

* * *

 

Rose had trouble falling asleep. The Threshecutioners were an interesting bunch, but there was something about that Kanaya. Her hair, her face...it all seemed so pretty. She ended up nodding off with visions of the girl in her head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, I am a writing fucking MACHINE today! Didn't expect to have two chapters done today. Now i'll work on that [REDACTED] fic...ahahah. ha. hoo.


	4. Don't Let's Start

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dave, Rose, and John go to band practice.

The cold waves surged forward. Racing each other to the shore, seeing who could hit the cold, wet sand first. Quickly, they flowed onto the land and receded into the freezing dark ocean. Dave saw him sitting there, drawing shapes in the sand, notes, lyrics, words, rhythms, breath, life, everything. Dave calls to him. The waves are too loud.

 

* * *

 

Dave grumbled as John shook him awake.

 

“Mm..five more minutes.”

 

“Dave, Rose is waiting outside. We’re getting breakfast. Come with us or we’re leaving you here.”

     

“Fine...fine. Fine. I’m getting up. Do you see this? You see me getting up?”

 

John shook his head and left the room. Dave changed his clothes, and before heading out to meet John and Rose, he read the sign on the back of the room door.

 

_Check out is at 11 A.M._

 

They had one day left before they would have to go somewhere else. There had to be a few other hotels in town. Probably. Hopefully. He opened the door and made his way to John and Rose, who were waiting by the car.

 

“You look well-rested,” Rose said.

 

“I feel great. Where are we gonna get food?”

 

“There’s a Denny’s nearby,” John explained.

 

“You think this one’s got a real gen-u-ine Mothman?” Dave joked, to John’s dismay.

 

A few years back John was very much into cryptid hunting, and as everyone fondly remembered, he did some dumpster diving behind a Denny’s for some sort of proof.

 

“If there is, will you throw down with it?” Rose asked, egging Dave on.

 

“Oh my god yes. Mothman if you hear me, I’m gonna kick your shit in.”

 

John, annoyed, simply got into the driver’s seat. Dave and Rose dropped it and got in themselves, and began to make their way to Denny’s. 

 

As John drove, Dave looked out the window. The snow had coated the ground, and it sparkled in the soft sunlight. Said sunlight, however, did not manage to heat things at all. Dave hated the intense summer heat as much as the next guy, but the winter cold was even _worse._ Before Dave knew it, they were at the restaurant. 

 

They climbed out of the car, and moved inside, where the most valuable commodity in the winter was; Warmth. Sitting down at a booth, they grabbed menus and ordered. 

 

“So, Dave, how much longer do we have in the hotel room?” Rose asked.

 

“One more night.”

 

“Hm...alright. There are other hotels here, probably.”

 

“Yeah.”

 

Silence took over the group. A long, awkward silence.

 

“Dave...how long are you planning to stay here?” 

 

Dave looked at Rose through his shades. She looked concerned. Worried. It was a look unfamiliar to him.

 

“I...I don’t know.”

 

Before the awkward conversation could continue, their breakfast finally arrived. But when they looked at their server, they found a familiar face.

 

“Tavros?”

 

“Oh, yo! Hey dudes!”

“Tavros, you work here?” Rose asked.

 

“Yeah, haha. Gotta get some money somehow, y’know?”  


“Dave, Rose, you know this guy?” John asked, perplexed.

 

“Oh yeah, that’s right, you stayed in when we went out, this is Tavros. He’s part of a band Rose and I saw last night.”

 

“Nice to meet you, man!” Tavros said, grinning. “Oh, right, your food! Sorry, sorry.”

 

“It’s alright man, don’t worry about it.”

 

Tavros laid their plates of breakfast in front of them.

 

“Oh my god I did not realize until now how hungry I am,” John said, and then he immediately began scarfing down his food.

 

“Oh, dudes, you should totally come down to our practice tonight.”  


“Sure man, sounds like it’ll be fun. Where is it?”  
  
“Uh, here, lemme just right the address down.”

 

Tavros grabbed a piece of paper from his pocket and scribbled down an address.

 

“See you there dudes! Enjoy your food!”

 

Tavros hurried off to take orders and serve food.

 

“John, wanna come with us this time?” Rose asked.

 

John simply nodded; His mouth was too full of food to talk. Dave laughed.

 

* * *

 

Once again, sunset began, and Dave, John, and Rose all got back in the car and drove to the place on the paper Tavros gave them. They found themselves outside a house and pulled into the snow-dusted driveway. The three got out of the vehicle and strode up to the door. It had a little holiday wreath on it. Dave knocked, and they all waited in the cold.

 

The door opened, and Karkat stood in the doorway.

 

“Dave? Rose? What are you guys doing here? Also, how the hell did you get here?”

 

“Did...Tavros not tell you what happened today?”

 

“No???”

 

“We ran into each other and he invited us by...I mean, we’ll go if you don’t want us to watch!” Dave assured.

 

“Oh no no, it’s fine, don’t worry about it! Come on in, it’s freezing outside.”

 

The group went inside, greeted by the welcoming embrace of warmth...and a cold voice.

 

“Karkat, who are these people?”

 

Dave turned to see someone who LOOKED like Karkat. He was taller, leaner, and looked annoyed as hell.

 

“Ugh. Dave, Rose...other...guy, this is Kankri, my annoying brother.”

 

“Rude. You should tell me if you’re having more than the band over.”

 

“I didn’t know they were coming, asshole.”  
  
“Whatever.” Kankri scoffed and stormed up the stairs.

 

“Don’t worry about him. He’s a prick ninety percent of the time.”

 

“Yikes.”

 

“Anyway, who’s this other guy?” Karkat said, pointing at John.

 

“Oh, this is John, he’s a friend.”  
  
John waved.

“Band’s in the garage,” Karkat said.

 

They followed him to the room and were greeted by the sounds of conversations, random notes, and drumsticks tapping together. They took their coats off, setting them on a nearby couch. Tavros and Gamzee are on the stage, Kanaya is standing next to it, and Sollux and Eridan seem to be arguing about...something. Tavros spots them and sets down his guitar, rushing over.

 

“Yo! You dudes made it! Nice! Are you guys ready for the ultimate band practice!”  


Sollux stormed out of the garage. Eridan walked over.

  
“You guys might not have band practice if you can’t get that asshole to calm down.”


End file.
